


Escapism 2.0

by Haberdasher



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Crying, Death, Episode: s05e28 Escapism, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Not Canon Compliant, Spoilers for Episode: s05e28 Escapism, Tears, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-14
Updated: 2019-01-14
Packaged: 2019-10-09 23:11:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17414327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haberdasher/pseuds/Haberdasher
Summary: Lars is visited by Steven. It doesn’t go how he thought it would.Set some time after the events of Escapism.Inspired by http://dorkryptos.tumblr.com/post/181788788233/ (spoilers).





	Escapism 2.0

Lars hadn’t been expecting a visit from Steven, exactly, but the boy’s sudden appearance from out of Lars’ hair wasn’t entirely unexpected, either. It had been a while since Steven had stopped by, and he had made a point of coming by every so often to drop off some gifts and let Lars know how things were going back on Earth.

More unexpected than Steven visiting in the first place was that his hands were empty, that he didn’t come bearing letters or gifts to share with Lars. He was also wearing some kind of fancy pink dress rather than his usual shirt and jeans get-up, but Lars was sure that there was a story behind that, and that Steven would share that story with him sooner rather than later.

But Steven didn’t look excited to tell Lars about everything he had missed back at home. He looked... he looked scared.

“Steven, I-”

But Steven interrupted Lars, started speaking in a rushed tone before Lars could finish his thought. “Lars, I need your help!”

Padparadscha gasped and said, “Steven is going to pay us another visit!”

Lars shot Padparadscha a nod and an appreciative grin. “Thanks, Padparadscha.” A moment later, he added, “I’d love to help, Steven, but we’re still pretty far from Earth right now, so-”

Steven interrupted Lars again. That was... unusual. Whatever was on his mind, whatever had brought him to ask for Lars’ help in the first place, it must be something big if he wasn’t willing to hear out Lars before speaking up himself.

“No, no, it’s not on Earth, you- you need to come get me on Homeworld.”

“What?”

Lars’ surprised exclamation was echoed by many of his fellow crew members.

“But we came all this way to get away from Homeworld!” Rhodonite said.

“We’re... not... going... back.” Fluorite stated, her speech only interrupted by a shocked “What?” from Padparadscha.

“They’re right.” Lars said. “We can’t go back to Homeworld, not after everything we’ve done to escape it.”

“But it will be different this time, I can make it different!” Steven protested. “You can tell them- tell them Pink Diamond sent you!”

“But Pink Diamond got shattered!” one of the Rutile twins’ heads said.

“Rose Quartz destroyed her!” said Rutile’s other head.

Steven shook his head and laughed, though his laughter sounded strangely hollow. “No, that’s what I thought too, but it’s not true, Pink faked her death! The truth is... the truth is, I’m Pink Diamond.”

Steven showed no signs of noticing how every Gem on the ship turned to face him, how they all looked right at him with wide eyes, but Lars certainly noticed.

“Or, well, my mom was, really.” Steven continued. “But I guess I am too, now, because I have her gem... it’s... it’s complicated.”

“Back up a bit.” Lars said. “What’s going on? Why do you need our help?”

Steven took a deep breath before replying. “Blue and Yellow Diamond came to Earth, and I proved that I was Pink Diamond and explained about Mom to them- or, well, tried to, anyway, I’m not sure that they really got it all- and then we tried to heal one of the corrupted Gems, and it worked for a second but it didn’t stick, and the other Diamonds said maybe we needed White Diamond’s help to heal them for good, so we went to Homeworld and I saw White Diamond but I barely got to talk to her, and then I held a ball to try to get her attention but she didn’t even show up, and then I- I fused with Connie, even though I didn’t mean to, really, and then the other Crystal Gems fused too, and the Diamonds got really angry about that and Yellow poofed them all- except for Bismuth, but she’s back on Earth with Dad, and I don’t know when they’re coming or, or if they’re coming, if they can even make it to Homeworld- and then they locked us in this big tower and there’s no way out except this small window that’s up really high and I need back-up, I need someone to help us get out...”

Okay.

Lars understood maybe half of what Steven was blabbering on about there.

Probably less than half, if Lars was being entirely honest with himself.

But from what he did understand, the situation was pretty ugly.

“Let me see if I got all that.” Lars said. “So your mom was Pink Diamond, and you told Blue and Yellow that, and you all went to Homeworld to try to talk to White Diamond, but after you fused at this ball you got locked in a tower with Lion-”

Steven shook his head, and when he spoke up his voice was shaking, too. “No, Lion’s not there. Just...”

 

_Steven was feeling pretty weak._

_He didn’t know how long it had been since they had been locked in this cell, but it had to have been several days, maybe even weeks gone by now without anything changing or anyone stopping by to check on them. The handful of snacks that Connie had brought with were long gone, split between the two of them evenly until there was nothing left._

_Steven was weak, but he could keep going if he tried, he knew he could. Maybe that was because he was half-Gem; he knew Gems didn’t need sustenance the same way humans did, or at least, not sustenance in the form of food and water, anyway._

_Steven wondered if that was part of the other Diamonds’ plan, to weaken his human half until his Gem half was all that remained._

_Steven wondered if the other Diamonds even realized that he had a human half to weaken in the first place._

_Meanwhile, Connie... wasn’t doing so well._

_She was laying on the floor, her head propped up against the wall; it had been some time since she had been able to walk, or even to stand under her own power. She was practically nothing but skin and bones, the muscles that she had built up with her sword-fighting practices now gone as her body struggled to keep itself going by any means possible._

_“Hold on, Connie.” Steven said, not for the first time. “My dad and Bismuth are coming, I know they are. Just hang in there a little longer.”  
_

_“Steven...” Connie’s voice was quiet now, quiet and raspy. Steven sat next to her, his arm pressed up against hers. She felt cold. People weren’t supposed to feel that cold.  
_

_Connie looked up at Steven as she spoke. “Steven, it’s okay.”  
_

_Then Connie closed her eyes and sank closer to the floor, and as Steven watched her for a long moment she didn’t move, not even slightly, not even her chest rhythmically rising and falling..._

_“No no no no no!” Steven muttered to himself. “It is_ not  _okay!”  
_

_Hot tears streamed down his face and onto Connie... onto Connie’s body._

_He hadn’t_ meant _for it to happen, really, but..._

_But the magic didn’t care if he meant for it to happen or not; it did its work just the same._

_But he knew, now, what was happening when Connie’s body started to glow, when her skin changed from brown to pink with hair to match._

_As Connie’s eyes fluttered open once more, her gaze wide with confusion, Steven wiped away his tears and let out a shaky laugh._

 

“Just me and... and Connie.”

Even looking at Steven, seeing the glistening tears welling up in his eyes, it still took Lars some time to connect the dots.

When he did, though, he let out a low sigh and said, “Oh, Steven...”

Lars wasn’t sure what else to say, but Steven filled the silence quickly enough, blurting out words to fill the void.

“...and it’s all my fault, I made her come with to Homeworld, I fused with her even though I knew better, I...”

Lars was never one to play the comforter. He had never been one to face feelings head-on, whether they were his own or someone else’s. That just wasn’t how he worked.

But as Steven blubbered on about how what had happened to Connie was all his fault, Lars stepped down from the captain’s chair and sat next to Steven, letting the boy rest his head on Lars’ shoulder until his uniform was soaked through with tears.


End file.
